Pikachu and the Haunted Castle
by Titanic Disaster
Summary: Pikachu and his friends had picked a castle to stay for the night. But when the castle turns out to be haunted, can they solve the case and stop the haunting?
1. Chapter 1

******Hey, everyone, sorry about my long absence. I've been on hiatus since mid-2013, but** now I'm back to writing.** This will be my Halloween story.**

**Disclaimer: **I do not owe Pokémon.

* * *

**Chapter 1**

It was a gloomy night in the woods. A gloomy night without a full moon and without stars. Nothing in the sky but clouds. The Hoothoot were hooting, and the Golbat were gliding. The wind was howling with the sounds of the night. Three little Pokémon, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Charmander, were walking down the dark path, with their best friend Pikachu following. Charmander held his tail as a candle to light the way.

"Guys, going to the forest at night gives me the creeps," Squirtle whimpered, feeling scared.

"Oh, there's nothing to be afraid of," said Bulbasaur. "It's all just the wind. And probably a few Golbat and Hoothoot. They just like to spend time at night."

Suddenly, a few Golbat flew by and zoomed over the four Pokémon, who had duck with yelps.

"Well, that was unexpected," said Pikachu.

"I don't like it when they do that," said Squirtle, shivering.

Suddenly, Charmander's eyes lock on sight of dark clouds with lightning and thunder. "Uh-oh," he said. "We're about to have a storm." The rain began pouring down. "And it started. Oh, I hate rain!"

Pikachu found a big leaf on the ground and picked it up to cover Charmander's tail like an umbrella. "This will cover your tail for now," he said.

Just then, Squirtle saw something huge over the trees. A building, to be exact. "Hey guys," he cried, pointing at a building, "I see a place where we can stay!"

"Great, just a place we need for the night," Charmander grinned. "Let's go."

The four little Pokémon ran and ran down the path to the building. The building turns out to be a castle.

"Wow, look at this castle!" Pikachu gasped.

Squirtle looked at the castle, as thunder and lightning flashed, and then he turned white. "What was I thinking?" he whined. "That place looks haunted. I shouldn't have got us here!"

"Aw, quit your whining," said Bulbasaur. "I don't believe in haunted castles. Let's go see if anyone's there."

"Uh, why don't you guys go in? I'll wait out here."

Bulbasaur rolled his eyes. "All right, you chicken. You can stay here in the pouring rain." And with that, he, Charmander and Pikachu head toward the castle.

"I don't know, guys," said Pikachu, "there may be ghosts he may look out for."

Squirtle smiled. "Sure, I can stay out in the rain and look out for..." He turned white as his pupils shrank. "What?! Ghosts?!" He zoomed toward Charmander, Bulbasaur, and Pikachu. "Wait for me!" He ran so fast he bumped into them, and they fell on the stairs.

"Ouch!" cried Charmander.

"So you changed your mind," said Pikachu.

"Yes, I did!" Squirtle cried.

"Get off me!" shouted Bulbasaur, hitting Squirtle's shell with his Vine Whip.

"I wonder if anyone lives there," Pikachu wondered.

Charmander peeked through the window. He saw a little light shining through a door crack open. "I see a little light," he said. "Someone should be home."

Squirtle peeked through the basement window, and he saw a ghostly figure wisping by. He screamed "Ghost!" and jumped backwards. "Ghost!"

Bulbasaur went to the window where Squirtle saw something, but he didn't see anything. "You might be imagining things, Squirtle," he said.

"No, I saw a ghost!" cried Squirtle. "It's so scary!"

"Come on, guys, let's go see if we can find a room for the night," Pikachu said.

Charmander rang the doorbell. Right before their eyes, the door opened by itself.

"Uh...did it open by itself?" Squirtle asked, shivering.

The four walked inside and looked around.

"Uh, hello?" called Pikachu. "Is anyone home?"

No one answered. Then suddenly, the door slammed shut with a bang, which scared the four into jumping with cries.

"It's haunted! Help me!" cried Squirtle, jumping onto Bulbasaur's flower back.

"Would you get off me?" Bulbasaur said, annoyed. "It's probably just the wind."

"I didn't see it coming," said Charmander.

"Who's there?" a voice called out.

The four yelped and held each other as the door that let the light through opened. The light was revealed to be Magmar, who was holding his tail as a candle.

"Hey, it's a Magmar," Charmander said.

"Well, you four look like you were lost," said Magmar when he saw the four. "Outside in the rain is no place for fire Pokémon these days."

Just then, Squirtle's stomach growled. "Uh, can we perhaps have something to eat?" he asked. "We've been walking through the woods all night."

"Why, certainly," Magmar said. "Come, right this way. I'll take you to the dining room."

The four little Pokémon followed Magmar down the hallway. As they walk, Bulbasaur noticed a portrait of the Legendary Beasts with the background of the castle they had entered, with Entei in the center, Raikou on the left, and Suicune on the right. "Hey, it's the Legendary Beasts," he said, "and there's that castle we had entered!"

"Yes," said Magmar, "the Legendary Beasts were guardians of this castle. They were useful to fight pirates and enemy soldiers. They used to serve the king."

"Cool!" Squirtle smiled.

Bulbasaur had looked at the painting of a general standing on a wooden platform. He was oblivious to the eyes watching them, but only Squirtle noticed.

"Say, are these eyes looking at you?" Squirtle asked.

Bulbasaur scoffed. "How can a painting look at someone when someone stares at the painting for too long?" he asked.

Eventually, the four had arrived at the dining room Magmar had led them to. There, they saw some Pokémon sitting in the table. A Gliscor, a Typhlosion, a Houndoom, a Machoke, an Ampharos, a Krokorok, a Luxray, and a Feraligatr.

"I didn't think you kids would find this castle," said Machoke.

"We got lost in the woods," Charmander said, "and we needed a place to stay for the night."

"Well, you came to the right place," said Gliscor. "I used to live in this castle a few years back with my friend Noivern. Back then, things were peaches and cream, when I was a Gligar, and Noivern was a Noibat."

"Well, that's good," said Pikachu. He noticed a few with troubled looks. "You guys look troubled."

"Some of us were concerned this castle's been haunted," Typhlosion said.

"I don't believe in haunted castles," Bulbasaur said. "This castle's been visited many times, but no one's ever been here at nighttime. How can it be haunted?"

"Well, things were very swell a few weeks back," said Krokorok. "Then there were clattering sounds and several noises from everywhere. I had checked for any Ghost Pokémon. I find nothing."

This made Squirtle scared. "So this is a haunted castle," he gulped.

"Don't be stupid. This castle isn't haunted," said Bulbasaur.

"You're so skeptic," Charmander frowned.

"Well, a Pokémon can disagree, can he?"

Krokorok then smiled. "Why don't you have a seat? The feast will be ready," he said.

"Oh, boy!" cried Squirtle.

The little Pokémon sat at the table, with Pikachu sitting between Luxray and Squirtle, and Bulbasaur sitting between Houndoom and Charmander. Magmar brought a cart in with all the Pokémon food.

"Pokémon food?" Pikachu asked. "Is that all you guys eat?"

"Well, the servants of this castle used to serve Pokémon food for all kinds of Pokémon," said Luxray.

"Oh, okay."

"Okay, folks," said Magmar, "dig in."

Then suddenly, the lights went out.

* * *

**Uh-oh. Looks like things are going to bump in the night for the Pokémon.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Now in this chapter, Pikachu and his pals will be solving the case of the haunted castle.**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

"What happened?" Luxray asked.

"The lights are out!" cried Krokorok. "I can't see!"

"Don't panic, folks," said Magmar. "This Charmander and I have fires on our tails."

Just then, a Dusknoir appeared over the table.

"It's a Dusknoir!" Luxray gasped.

"Oh, I knew this place is haunted!" cried Squirtle.

"I warn you to leave this castle," said Dusknoir. "If you do not leave by midnight, you will be trapped forever! Let this be a lesson to you all!"

Suddenly, smoke appeared and spread around the dining room, blinding the Pokémon. They cough and cough as Dusknoir disappeared with a cackle. The smoke cleared away shortly after, and the lights came back on. Everyone noticed that Feraligatr was gone.

"Hey, where's Feraligatr?" Krokorok asked.

They called out for Feraligatr. But they did not hear his voice.

"Oh, no," cried Charmander. "Dusknoir must've captured Feraligatr!"

"I knew it! The castle's haunted!" Squirtle cried, panicking. "We're gonna be next if we don't leave right now! I wanna go home!"

"Would you knock it off?" Bulbasaur asked. "This castle can't be haunted. There must be a reason."

Pikachu thought for a second and realized that solving the case might prove the castle isn't haunted. "Good idea," he said. "We can solve this case."

Squirtle turned white. "Are you crazy?! Solve the haunted castle case?!" he cried.

"This castle couldn't have been haunted," Bulbasaur said. "There must a culprit somewhere. We gotta figure out this case."

"Well, I want you guys to do me a favor."

"What's that?"

"Talk me out of it!" He ran to the door, but he was grabbed by Bulbasaur's Vine Whip, and he struggled. "No, let me go!"

"Squirtle, if we're gonna spend the night in this castle, we have to solve the case," said Charmander. "Think about heroic we'll be."

"But haunted places made me so scared!"

"You've been to the Haunted Zone back in PokéPark, you enjoyed it," said Pikachu.

"That's different!"

"Well, if you four can solve this case, be my guest," said Gliscor.

"We can do it," said Charmander. "Give us a chance."

"Solving the haunted castle is kind of dangerous," Krokorok said, "but we hope Feraligatr is okay."

"I'll go get some help," Typhlosion said. He got up and left the dining room.

"Why do we have to solve this case?" Squirtle whined. "This place is..."

"I don't care," Bulbasaur interrupted. "It is not haunted. We just have to figure it out."

"Okay, let's get going," said Pikachu. "We'll have to check upstairs."

When the four arrived at the stairway, Charmander held his tail as a candle and went up first, with the others following. With every step, the stairs creak.

"Sure looks dark upstairs," Pikachu said.

"Oooohh..." Squirtle shivered, "I hate to come in the dark."

"Boy, are you chicken," said Bulbasaur, going to tease Squirtle.

Squirtle glared at Bulbasaur. "Hey, I'm not chicken!"

"That's what you always said, and then what happens later? You freak out."

Squirtle screamed when lightning flashed through the window, and he hid behind a knight armor, shivering.

"See? That's just you."

"I don't like it!"

"All right, guys," said Pikachu as Charmander lit up a candle on a stool. "Charmander and I will check the bedrooms. You guys check the attic."

"The attic?" Squirtle asked. "But that's scary!"

"What's the matter, still chicken out?" Bulbasaur teased.

"Bulbasaur, you need this candle," said Charmander, handing the candle to Bulbasaur.

"Oh, quit teasing! I'm not scared!" Squirtle protested.

"Then come on," said Bulbasaur.

Bulbasaur went up the stairs to the attic, after he pick up Squirtle with Vine Whip.

"I don't wanna go!" wailed Squirtle.

"Oh, shut up," moaned Bulbasaur.

The two arrived at the attic, and it sure is dark. Except Bulbasaur had carried the candle Charmander had handed to him.

"Okay, there's nothing here," said Squirtle. "Let's go to bed." He walked down the stairs, but Bulbasaur grabs him with Vine Whip. "Help!"

"Are you getting a cold shell? There's nothing to be afraid of," said Bulbasaur.

"Me, having a cold shell? No way."

"Well then, get going."

The two walked in and looked around. They see creepy spiders in spider webs and cobwebs everywhere.

"Oh, look at this attic," Bulbasaur said. "It's so dusty. I'm disappointed the maids hadn't done any dusting for ages."

Squirtle sweeper his hand on a chest, and dust flew everywhere. Some went into Bulbasaur's nose, and he sneezed.

"Hey! Watch where you're dusting!" Bulbasaur yelled.

"Sorry. It really is dusty."

"Never mind that. Look around for the clues!"

"Nothing to it, Bulbasaur. I'm on it."

Squirtle looked at the bookcase and searched from shelf to shelf. Then he saw a dusty book with a paw print on it. "Looks like someone didn't dust this book," he said. He swept the dust off the book, but the paw print was still there.

Bulbasaur approached the bookcase and saw the paw print Squirtle found. "Say, is that a clue?" he asked.

"I don't know, I just found it."

Bulbasaur looked for something to take a picture. He found an old camera on a table, picked it up with Vine Whip, shook and blew some dust off, and took a picture of it. He was surprise the camera still had film in it after it's been left behind.

"Wow. I'm glad the camera still works," Bulbasaur grinned. "I can't wait to show this clue to Pikachu."

As soon as Bulbasaur walked, Squirtle saw Dusknoir appearing behind him, and his eyes widen. "Behind you!" he cried. He used his Water Gun attack to hit Dusknoir, but Dusknoir quickly vanished for Water Gun to hit Bulbasaur, which caused him to drop the camera, and the water pushed him straight to the wall with a thud.

Bulbasaur sputtered angrily and glared at Squirtle. "You did that on purpose, you clumsy idiot!" he yelled.

"But I just saw Dusknoir!" Squirtle said. "He was right behind you!"

"A likely story. Come here!"

Bulbasaur chased Squirtle around the attic to attack him with Vine Whip.

"Ow, ow, ow! Stop whipping me!" Squirtle cried.

The whipping stopped when the two saw Dusknoir appearing in front of them, and they screamed.

"Dusknoir!" cried Squirtle.

"Run!" cried Bulbasaur.

The two ran as fast as they could, but Dusknoir stopped them with Psychic attack, as they were floated off the ground.

"Wh-wh-what are you gonna do to us?" Squirtle gulped.

Dusknoir did not reply, but he took them to an empty chest, opened it and forced the two in before closing the lid and locking it. He cackled evilly and left. Bulbasaur and Squirtle banged on the lid, calling for help. They called and called, but it was useless. It was until they finally stop screaming.

"Oh, we're goners," said Squirtle. "Now do you believe in haunted castles?"

"Don't quit, Squirtle," said Bulbasaur. "You just never know whenever help may arrived."

"Well, I wanna get outta here, now!" He resumed banging on the lid. "Somebody help! Help!" He stopped when he heard footsteps coming closer to the chest. "Oh, no! We're doomed!"

The two heard a click, and the lid opened to reveal Charmander and Pikachu.

"Charmander, Pikachu! You're here!" Squirtle smiled. "Yay!" He hugged Charmander, hugged Pikachu, and then hugged Bulbasaur. "We're alive!"

Bulbasaur growled and hit Squirtle with Vine Whip.

"Did you guys find any clues?" Pikachu asked.

"We found one," said Bulbasaur. "There's this book with a paw print on it."

"I thought it was just dust, except when I dusted it, the paw print is still there," said Squirtle.

Charmander found the book Squirtle had found, and he looked at the paw print. "It looked like someone's paw was painted," he said.

"Paint? But why would someone leave paint on a book?" Squirtle asked.

"I don't know, but this is the clue we found."

"Well, come on, guys, the game's afoot," said Pikachu. "We gotta solve this case and prove that this castle is not haunted."

* * *

**They had found the first clue. Now they'll have to find the other clues to solve the case.**


	3. Chapter 3

**The gang may look for more clues after finding the first one.**

* * *

**Chapter 3**

Charmander borrowed a magnifying glass from a drawer and checked the paw print on the book. "It looks red," he said.

"Heh, it's a crime to put red paint on the book as a bad prank," said Bulbasaur.

"Prank or not, this might be the clue," said Pikachu. "If we find more clues, we can find the culprit."

Charmander had dusted the book, and he saw the title "How to Scare People". "Hey, what's this?" he asked. "The book says 'How to Scare'. Hmm. Seems like we got a culprit after all."

"How to scare?" Squirtle asked. "Who would write a book like that?"

"That's no book," Charmander said. "It's an instruction manual. Someone must've plotted to make this castle haunted."

"Well, whatever's going on, we gotta look for clues," said Pikachu.

The four went searching for more clues. But when they got to the next bedroom, the lights went out.

"Help, I cant see!" Squirtle cried. "It's so dark!"

"Easy, Squirtle, I'm a candle," said Charmander, holding his tail.

When they search the bedroom, the door they went through slammed shut, which scared them. Pikachu ran to open the door. But the door would not open.

"Oh, no! The door's locked!" Pikachu cried.

"The door's locked!? Oh, no, we're doomed!" cried Squirtle. "We're all gonna die!"

"No, we're not," said Bulbasaur.

Squirtle raced to the door and banged on it constantly. "Help, help! Somebody help! We're locked in! Help! I don't wanna die! I wanna go home! Mommy!"

Pikachu jumped on Squirtle and restrained him. "Calm down, Squirtle," he said. "Nothing's going to happen."

Squirtle settled down, but he's still scared. "That's what you say," he said, "and what happens later? Something goes wrong."

The group suddenly heard banging sounds from downstairs and Krokorok's screams.

"That sounds like Krokorok!" Bulbasaur gasped.

The lights came back on after the last banging sound.

"Come on, we gotta help Krokorok!" Pikachu said.

Pikachu ran to the door, which finally opened, and they ran back down to the dining room, but they notice that Krokorok was not there.

"What happened?" Charmander asked. "Where's Krokorok?"

"Dusknoir was here," said Houndoom. "He was cackling at us, and then he disappeared. I heard Krokorok screaming, and when the lights came on, he was gone."

"Did you kids find any clues?" Machoke asked.

Charmander showed the book with the red paw print on it.

"Hey, someone vandalized the book with red paint on it!" Houndoom gasped.

"Who would do such a thing?" Magmar asked. "That was so cruel."

Squirtle noticed three strands of hair on the chair Krokorok once sat on and pick them up. "I think I found another clue," he said. "Krokorok has no fur."

Pikachu looked at the strands of hair Squirtle found. "You're right," he said. "Someone must've lost them when he kidnapped Krokorok."

"This does get strange," said Bulbasaur. "But who is the culprit?"

"We won't know until we look," said Charmander.

But Pikachu was not so sure. He looked at the hairs like they seem familiar to him. "Keep searching," he said.

"I'll tag along, kids," said Ampharos.

"You? Are you sure?"

"Certainly," Ampharos smiled. "I knew this castle years ago."

Pikachu smiled. "Great idea. Let's search this castle."

The four went looking for other clues.

* * *

**Now with Ampharos helping the little Pokémon, they can solve the case to track the culprit.**


	4. Chapter 4

**The gang may look for more clues after finding the first one.**

* * *

**Chapter 4**

The gang went to look for more clues. It will be a long night to solve the case.

"I think we better split up in groups to look for more clues," said Pikachu.

"That'll be a good idea," Bulbasaur said, "considering we would cover as much ground as we could."

"But what if there are ghosts?" Squirtle gulped.

"Don't worry, kid," said Ampharos. "I can help you face your fears."

"Okay, Charmander and I will check the bedroom," said Pikachu. "You guys check the attic."

"You got it," Bulbasaur said.

Squirtle's pupils shrank in fear. "Oh, no! Not the attic!" he cried. "Anything but that!" He ran away, but he got caught by Bulbasaur's Vine Whip.

"You're coming with," said Bulbasaur. "What are you afraid of?"

Pikachu and Bulbasaur went to check the bedroom as the three climbed up the stairs, with Bulbasaur having to drag Squirtle as he tried grasping the stairs with no success.

Inside the bedroom, Pikachu and Charmander look for clues. Pikachu checked under the bed as Charmander opened the closet to check on the shelves. He held his tail for some light.

"I don't see any clues under this bed," thought Pikachu. Suddenly, his tail got caught on the bed sheet, and he got tangled when he squirmed to get it off. "Charmander, help! I can't see anything!"

"Pikachu?"

Alerted, Charmander tried to get down but suddenly tripped and fell off. He grabbed the sheet for support but ended up landing on the floor with the sheet covering him, except for his tail. The two wander around while covered in sheets.

In the attic, Ampharos, Bulbasaur and Squirtle search for clues. Squirtle checked the globe but got his finger pinched when hie rolled the globe around and got that finger caught on a wooden arc.

"Ouch!" Squirtle yelped, sucking his finger.

"Shh! Just keep looking for clues," said Bulbasaur.

Ampharos checked the window for any fingerprints. When she stepped on one of the white sheets that is are curtains for that window, it wound up torn from above, and it fell on her. "Hey, I can't see!" she cried as she wandered around.

"Hold on, Ampharos," said Bulbasaur. He used his Vine Whip to help Ampharos, but his vines got caught in another white sheet from the same window, aneeds when he pulls his vines back, the vines take the sheet with him, and he ended up being covered. "I can't see!"

The two wandered around as Pikachu and Charmander came in the attic. Squirtle then saw his friends covered in sheets, and he screamed. "GHOSTS!" He ran away and head for the door, but he accidentally bumped into it while looking at them, causing the door to close. He started banging on the door. "Help me, you guys! I saw ghosts in the attic! Help, help!"

Squirtle kept banging on the door as the four covered Pokémon wander around until they bump into each other. Ampharos came out of the sheet and noticed the others. She pulled the sheets off to see Bulbasaur, Pikachu, and Charmander.

"What happened?" Charmander asked.

The group noticed Squirtle still banging on the door in the fit of panic. They started yelling at him to stop. Squirtle then hid himself in his shell, and Pikachu came to him.

"Hey, Squirtle, you alright?" Pikachu asked.

"Oh, Pikachu! I just saw ghosts in this attic!" Squirtle said.

"These ghosts you saw were us covered in sheets."

"You guys?" He uncovered himself and saw the group. "Oh, it's really you guys. I was so scared."

"Never mind that," said Bulbasaur. "We gotta keep looking for clues."

"Oh, look!" Charmander gasped.

The group saw some claw marks on the hatch of a fuse box, including an open lock.

"Another clue! It looks like the lights going out is from someone using the fuse box, and only a sharp claw can unlock this lock," said Pikachu.

"But what about the ghost that we saw in the dining room?" Squirtle asked.

"It wasn't the real Dusknoir," said Ampharos. "It was a hologram. Someone must've hidden the projector somewhere and played it when the lights went out."

"That has to be another clue! Come on!"

The group returned to the dining room where they met Dusknoir. They looked for the projector, when Squirtle noticed a small hole on the wall, but when he poked his finger through it, he heard a slight torn of paper. "Uh, guys," he said, "I think I found it."

Bulbasaur tore the paper from the wall, and behind that sheet of paper was a storage room, and on a barrel was the hologram projector.

"There it is!" Pikachu smiled. "Looks like the culprit had made this sheet of wall to hide this storage room and the projector!"

"But what about the disappearance of Feraligatr and Krokorok?" Squirtle asked.

Pikachu crossed his arms. "There's only one way to find out. We're gonna look for a secret passage way."

* * *

**The group had found two new clues. But will they find a secret passage that can explain the disappearance of Krokorok and Feraligatr?**


	5. Chapter 5

**The gang will have to find the secret passage in order to find Feraligatr and Krokorok and hopefully catch the culprit.**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

After finding the clues, the gang has to look for a secret passage that will lead them to Feraligatr and Krokorok.

"Does anyone know what a secret passage would be?" Squirtle asked.

"Well, I've heard a story that a secret passage would be behind any one of the paintings," said Ampharos.

"Then that's what we're gonna do," said Pikachu. "Spread out!"

They spread out to find a painting that would lead to the secret passage. Bulbasaur tapped his vines on the paintings to see if any of them spin. Charmander held his tail close to the paintings to look for any cracks by them. Squirtle tapped on the wall to find a hidden door.

"I hope Ampharos is right," Charmander said. "I'm worried about those two."

"Focus, Squirtle," said Bulbasaur. "We have to look."

The gang looked and looked for the hidden passage. Charmander held his tail at the Mewtwo painting back at the dining room. He looked behind the painting and noticed something. "Guys? I think I found it."

The others arrived at the painting. Pikachu noticed what Charmander's tail lit on. "Hey, is that...?" He pushed a small button, and the painting opened like a door. "Aha! It was right here!"

"That painting was cool," Squirtle smiled.

"Let's go in," said Pikachu.

Squirtle's smile faded. "In there? That's creepy!"

"Come on," said Bulbasaur, pushing Squirtle into the hidden passage.

The gang walked down the tunnel of the hidden area. Charmander held his tail, as always, using it as a candle.

"It looks gloomy in here," Squirtle said.

"Kinda reminds me of those movies we used to watch, huh?" Bulbasaur asked.

"We never saw any scary movies, Bulbasaur," Pikachu assured. "But I did remember us sneaking into those theaters one time."

Squirtle laughed. "That's was before we got busted by a guard's Machoke," he said.

Ampharos heard muffling sounds. "Wait, listen," she said.

The gang headed for a door, where they heard the muffling sounds, and Charmander opens it to see Feraligatr and Krokorok tied up, their mouths duct taped.

"It's Feraligatr and Krokorok!" Pikachu cried.

Ampharos removed the tape from the tied up Pokémon's mouths. "Who did this to you?" she asked.

"Some ghost wearing a sheet brought us here," Feraligatr said as Pikachu and Squirtle untie him and Krokorok. "He claims the castle to be his."

"Ghosts can't be wearing sheets," Pikachu said. "Seems like someone is trying to scare you guys out. We're gonna set up a trap to catch that culprit."

"But where can we find this ghost?" Charmander asked.

Krokorok screamed when he saw the ghost. "Right there!"

The gang saw the ghost running away, and Pikachu can see its feet running.

"That's no ghost. We gotta catch the culprit," Pikachu said. "Come on!"

The gang chased the ghost all over the hidden passage. But the ghost then jumped through the spinning painting and vanished. Squirtle opened the painting, and the ghost was gone.

"Hey, he's gone," Squirtle said.

"Come on, guys, I have a plan," Pikachu said. "And I think it'll work."

* * *

**Well, they found Feraligatr and Krokorok, but now they'll have to catch the ghost and expose the culprit.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Now that the gang had found Feraligatr and Krokorok, they're about to catch the ghost and reveal who the culprit is.**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

After exiting the hidden passage through the painting, Pikachu found some rope in the closet. "We'll use this to capture the ghost by the feet, and when we catch that ghost, we catch the culprit behind the costume," he said.

"That's a great idea," Bulbasaur said with a smile. "I'll go hang it up."

"And who's gonna be the bait?" Squirtle asked. He then noticed Bulbasaur smirking at him. "What?"

"You could be the perfect choice for the bait," said Bulbasaur.

Squirtle's pupils shrank. "M-m-m-me?" he shivered. "But, but, but I'm scared of ghosts."

"But Squirtle, if you could help us catch the phoney ghost, you'd be the bravest Pokémon," Charmander said. "Think about it."

"But what if I get caught? Then we'll never catch the ghost!" Squirtle protested.

"Maybe, but it's the only way to catch the ghost," said Pikachu. "Come on, you're our best friend, and friends stick together. Right?"

Squirtle started to consider what Pikachu had said, and he smiled. "Okay, I'll try to be brave," he said.

"That's the spirit!" Ampharos said. "I'm relying on you kids."

"But what about you?" Pikachu asked.

"I had my fun helping you guys find clues. I'll go see if the others came back with help. Good luck!" And with that, she left for the hall.

"She does have a point," said Charmander. "I'm thankful she helped us find clues."

"Yeah," said Bulbasaur.

* * *

Eventually, it was time to catch the so-called ghost. The group hid behind various objects as Squirtle stood by the lasso.

"Don't worry, Squirtle, we're right by you," said Charmander.

"Okay..." Squirtle said nervously.

The group waited and waited for the ghost to appear. Eventually, the candles were blown out by the wind, and the group immediately saw the ghost from earlier showing up from the shadow.

"Yooouuu haave trespassed myyyy castleee," the ghost wailed. "Noooww you'll be trapped in here...forrreeeverrrr!"

"Get ready, guys!" Pikachu whispered.

Squirtle screamed and ran as the ghost went after him.

"Now!" Pikachu cried, and Bulbasaur pulled the rope to catch the ghost's leg, lifting it off the ground and hanging it upside-down. "Yes! We did it!"

"Great plan, Pikachu!" Charmander smiled. "You were awesome!"

"Yeah," said Bulbasaur, "but where's Squirtle?"

The group heard rattling sounds, and they approach it. Charmander opened the chest to find Squirtle shivering.

"Is, is, is it gone?" Squirtle said.

"We caught it," said Charmander. "Thanks for your help."

"I helped?" Squirtle asked. And then he blushed. "Aw, shucks."

* * *

Pikachu's plan was a success, and the group brought the tied up ghosts in the dining room, where they find the others from before, with a Machoke and an Arcanine. Pikachu told them everything.

"So you see, this ghost is no ghost at all," Pikachu concluded. "Now it's time we reveal who the culprit is." He tore the sheet, and the culprit was none other than a Meowth.

"A Meowth!" Squirtle gasped.

"Meowth?!" Feraligatr added. "But why?"

Meowth glared at the group. "Because you guys kicked me out of the castle just because I'm not good at being a housekeeper. I wanted to scare you all out so that the castle will be back in my possession!"

"So you played haunted castle on us and kidnapped me and Feraligatr," Krokorok said, crossing his arms in disappointment.

"Admit it, Meowth," said Pikachu. "You learned it from the book 'How to Scare', which you left your paw print on from the red paint you used on a sheet to camouflage the closet, where you hid the projector that played the Dusknoir hologram. That's why you wanted to scare us out, isn't it?"

"It's true, and it would've work too if it weren't for you and your stupid friends!" Meowth snapped.

"I heard more than enough," said Machoke, picking up Meowth. "Meowth, I think you earned yourself a punishment, namely a spanking."

Meowth gasped. "No, not the spanking! Anything but that!"

Meowth squirmed as he was taken out of the castle for his punishment, as Pikachu and the gang laughed.

"Serves him right for haunting this castle," Bulbasaur laughed.

"You said it," said Charmander. "Even that Dusknoir was a joke."

Squirtle remembered something. "Wait a minute. Bulbasaur and I did see the real Dusknoir."

Pikachu fell confused. "What are you talking about?"

Bulbasaur then realized the incident from earlier. "Oh, yeah," he said. "The hologram one would never use Psychic attack." Then he got scared. "What if that means...?"

The gang heard evil laughter and turned to see the real Dusknoir, as he was using Psychic to make the skeletons rattle.

"Get out..." Dusknoir cackled.

The gang screamed and ran out of the castle, and they ran down the forest and toward the rising sun.

"I knew that castle is haunted all along!" Squirtle cried. "I wanna go back to the beach!"

* * *

**And there you have it. That's the end of the story. I should've finished this on Halloween, but better late than never. Happy belated Halloween.**


End file.
